Heartbreak Ridge
by Mrs. Sherlock Holmes
Summary: Follow the Courier Kate as she journeys across the Mojave Wasteland in search of purpose and a place to hang up her guns for good. Our story begins when Kate tumbles into Novac and meets a surly sniper named… Oh yeah, you know his name, and you know where this is going eventually. Reviews please...I may do a sequel but I'm inclined to think our heroes need a break, don't you?
1. Chapter 1

_This fic is based on Fallout: New Vegas and contains quest spoilers. All characters, places, and situations are the property of Bethesda Softworks. Follow the Courier Kate as she journeys across the Mojave Wasteland in search of purpose and a place to hang up her guns for good. Our story begins when Kate tumbles into Novac and meets a surly sniper named… Oh yeah, you know his name, and you know where this is going eventually…Contains language and PG-13 romance later. Please read and review if your little heart goes pitter-pat for Boone like mine does. ***Also a huge thank you to __Genesis Vakarian__ for motivating me to finish this fic by commenting and following. Thanks so much!***_

Kate strode into the little town, kicking tumbleweed out of her way as she went along. Still stunned by the horrors she had seen in Nipton she steered herself vaguely towards a sign that said "Dino Delite Motel." Inside she was met by a grey haired woman counting caps behind a desk.

"Well now dearie, welcome to Novac! Been a little while since we've had a new guest. I'm Jeannie Mae Crawford. I've got a room on the ground floor available with a nice view of Dinky. Only 35 caps a night if you're needing a place to stay."

"Actually I'm looking for someone." Kate said, not sure who or what "Dinky" was.

"You'll want to talk to Manny, the sniper up in the dinosaur. He sees everything and anyone who goes by on the road." The old woman pointed out the window to a 30 foot tall, fiberglass tyrannosaur looming over the road in front of the motel. Clearly Kate had been so preoccupied with her own thoughts that she had missed the iconic Dinky when she came into town. She thanked Jeannie Mae and went to find the sniper.

Dinky, like everything else in the Mojave, had seen better days. The blistered and peeling paint that covered his hide was the palest of greens, bleached by time and fallout. The sun was going down as Kate went up two sets of stairs through a gift shop and pushed open the rickety door set in the dino's mouth. Manny's back was to her and the door, but as soon as it creaked open he spun and pointed his rifle directly at her head.

"Oh shit!" her arms shot up and struck the red flaking roof of Dinky's mouth, showering them both with flecks of paint and dust.

"What the…you shouldn't sneak up on a man like that." He growled, lowering his rifle.

"Sorry I was looking for the sniper who sits up here. I heard he may have some information that I need."

"Yeah well I'm not real sociable so if you don't mind…" he nodded towards the door and went back to staring out at the darkening Mojave. She was not stunned at the rudeness of this "Manny" jerk. Hell, she had been shot in the head, stabbed, bit, trampled, and nearly gang raped by raiders, all since arriving in Goodsprings a week earlier; surely she could handle one cold shoulder. Mere rudeness without any physical attack at least gave her time to study her newest wasteland close encounter with the asshole kind. He stood about 6 foot tall, muscular, and wore a tight fitting white t-shirt and khaki cargo pants and his close cropped blonde hair was crowned with a red beret. He wore sunglasses, ridiculous in the twilight, and had a .308 service rifle with a telescopic sight slung across his chest. By the time she had made this mental inventory Kate was growing angry. What right did this jerk off have to speak to her that way?

"Hey, you can just fuck off pal. I'm tired of being pushed around by assholes everywhere I go. This time I'm not leaving until I get some answers so get used to me standing behind you Manny." Without turning around, the cold, flat voice of the sniper slithered into her ears.

"I'm not Manny lady, and you can stand there till your hair falls out but I've got nothing to say to anyone in this town."

The revelation that this was not the man she was looking for dumped a bucket of ice on Kate's temper. She reached for the door and turned the knob as quietly as possible before creeping out of the sniper's nest. Still she couldn't resist a parting shot.

"Sorry but I'm not from around here."

The sniper's head inclined slightly and she head him mutter, "you're not from around here… Hey! Wait!"


	2. Chapter 2

The crack of the .308 and the fine pink mist that followed had Kate stunned for a moment. She stood still, watching the smoke wafting from the dino's mouth where Boone had fired his perfectly placed shot into Jeannie May Crawford's cranium.

Well that was… weird, though Kate. Not that she had never seen someone's head explode before, but to have led that person to their death herself was a little shocking. She supposed Jeannie May had deserved it for selling Boone's pregnant wife into slavery, but it was still a little hard to shake off the chill of watching an execution like that. She felt numb as she ascended the creaky wooden stairs clutching the bill of sale in her hand. Boone just looked at her with no emotion in his eyes and asked, "So, how did you know?"

She handed him the bill of sale and his beret. He read the note, tore it into pieces and let the hot Mojave wind blow it from his fingers. They watched them float out of sight against the velvety night sky.

"Well that's done. Time to move out of this town." Boone shouldered a battered rucksack and slung his rifle over his shoulder.

"What will you do now?" Kate asked as she followed him out of the gift shop.

"Haven't given it much thought. Maybe join up with my old NCR unit."

"I'm headed towards New Vegas. I have…business there." she said, hopefully. "I could use some help getting there in one piece."

He turned and looked at her through his dark shades, his expression unreadable.

"Look miss, uh… hell I don't even know your name."

"It's Kate." she said, trying not to sound too eager.

"Well Kate, I'm kind of a solitary guy."

"Yeah, but you're a sniper. Don't they usually work in teams to be most effective?"

"That's true, but…"

"I need a job anyway, maybe the NCR needs two new recruits." She barely managed to avoid a childish "pleeeeeezzeee."

He stood stock still in the swirling dust for a long minute. Finally he heaved a sigh and dug into his rucksack, pulling out a worn beret, just like the one he wore on his own head. He snugged it down over her hair with less than gentle yank.

"Alright, but you really should change your mind. I've got bad things coming to me."

Without a chance for questions he picked up his bag and began a swift march towards the distant lights on the northern horizon. Kate had to run to catch up. They walked until dawn when they stopped at a little trading post called the 188. Kate spent an obscene amount of caps on a sniper rifle and enough .308 ammunition to take down Caesar's Legion single handedly. Boone watched silently as she lay prone on the broken pavement, shooting at, and mostly missing the giant ants in the nearby dry lake bed. He listened to her curse for 20 minutes or so before he grunted and knelt down beside her. He silently adjusted her grip on the rifle and then lay down next to her with a pair of rusty binoculars.

"You're hitting six inches too high. Bullets rise above your sight picture so aim lower than you think you need to." Her next shot split the worker ants head right between the antenna. Kate smiled and glanced over at Boone, but no words of praise were forthcoming. She tried to hide her disappointment and continued picking off worker ants. After a while she got tunnel vision and forgot to glance up from her scope occasionally. Her first clue that something was wrong was a hot blast of fire that singed her face on the right side. She rolled quickly left and jumped to her feet in time to see Boone plunging a wicked looking combat knife into a soldier ant's abdomen. The ant collapsed into the dust and Boone wiped the knife on his trousers. Kate bowed her head, ashamed of her lack of perception. Boone didn't look at her, but as he strode past, headed for the 188's canteen he muttered, "Don't get tunnel vision" as though they hadn't just been nearly roasted alive.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day they cut back east towards Boulder City. Kate had heard rumors that the man she was looking for may have passed through there. The man…more like vermin, was called Benny, and he was responsible for the bullet that had passed through Kate's skull a while back. Lucky for her she was found quickly afterwards and was only "mostly" dead. She had been patched up by Doc Mitchell in Goodsprings. Now Kate was trying to track down her would be murderer and find out why he had given her lead poisoning over a small, platinum poker chip.

They strode into Boulder City and found themselves in the middle of a crisis. According to NCR Lt. Monroe, some tribals known as the Great Khans were holding some NCR troop hostage in the town ruins.

"We're at a stale mate right now. I don't even know if my people are still alive." Said the Lt. with a weary shake of his head. Kate though for a moment. If there was one thing she was really good at it was diplomacy.

"Maybe I could negotiate with the Khans, and get your men released?" she offered.

Lt. Monroe seemed to consider this for a moment.

"You're not NCR though…oh, screw it. Get my people out alive and I'll deal with any flack from the higher-ups."

Half an hour later Kate had not only "convinced" the Khans to release the captive soldiers, she had gotten an earful about her target Benny. After watching Kate twirl her hair in one hand while juggling a plasma grenade in the other, the Khan named Jessup had been all too eager to stammer out that Benny had gone to the Top's Casino in New Vegas. Soon they were on their way back towards the big lights. Kate reflected that it had been a satisfying day for everyone. Jessup was happy to leave with his organs on the inside of his body, Lt. Monroe was happy to get his men back, and Kate was happy that she was one step closer to Benny. The only person who didn't seem happy was Boone, but this was becoming a familiar state of affairs so she paid it no mind.

Later, after they had made camp in the wasteland, Kate asked Boone if he was excited to be going to New Vegas.

"Whatever," he replied with a grunt, "makes no difference to me, but just what are you going to do with this Benny guy when you catch up with him?"

"Oh, I have a plan." Kate said with a smirk on her face and a glint in here eye.

Two days later Kate was standing in the owner's suite at the Tops casino. A slick haired guy in a garish black and white checkered suit had just locked the door behind him and was approaching her with a wicked smile on his lips.

"Benny's gonna show you the Tops baby." He purred as he ran his hands down Kate's sides to her hips and leaned in for a kiss. The next thing that went through his mind was a bullet from his own 9mm pistol. Kate had eased it from its holster and brought it up to the back of his head while he was distracted.

The guard outside heard a muffled thump from the suite, but wrote it off to his boss's vigorous sexual practices.

Kate found what she was looking for in the pocket of Benny's coat. It was small, shiny, and totally worthless to her. She waited a few minutes and then ruffled her hair and disarranged her clothing slightly before easing out of the suite and passing the guard with a wink. Once outside the casino she walked across the street to the fountain in front of the Ultra Lux. She stood there for a moment with her eyes closed and wished.

Boone watched her from where he stood, propped against a magazine rack, mouth twitching into the smallest of smiles as he saw her chuck the platinum chip into the fountain. She turned and straightened her hair and clothes, retrieving her weapons from Boone as he held them out to her.

"That guy Benny," he said quietly "he was a real piece of work."

Kate barely managed not to giggle.


	4. Chapter 4

At the same time the platinum chip was making a splash in the fountain, a runner from the NCR embassy walked up and unceremoniously summoned her to the ambassador's office. A few minutes later Kate stood in front of the desk of Ambassador Crocker and tried not to roll her eyes or fall asleep. Everyone wanted favors. She had already decided that the NCR was the least assholish of all the Mojave factions out there, but still they asked a lot for very little in return.

"…and I need you to convince these Boomers at Nellis Air Base to aid us in the upcoming battle." Crocker finished his speech and looked at her expectantly. She had no idea what he had just asked them to do, but she simply nodded and looked thoughtful, then said, "Sure thing Mr. Ambassador." She turned and made a silly face at Boone once her back was to Crocker, but apparently his earlier show of personality had drained him. The stopped at Gun Runners before heading east to stock up on ammunition, then headed towards the sounds of heavy artillery.

A couple days later Kate had effectively endeared herself to Mother Pearl and the other Boomers by solving various problems around their base. She and Boone had decided that it was best to leave him out of this part of the mission since the Boomers were so particular about letting "savages" in their compound. He also flat refused to assist her with a special request by one of the Boomers named Jack to help him make a love connection with an employee of Crimson Caravan. Kate had just delivered the amorous Janet to the air base and was about to leave.

Jack and Janet smiled shyly at each other and joined hands. "Thank you for everything Kate. We owe you our happiness." Kate smiled at them both and said, "Anytime, good luck to you both." As Kate walked away from Nellis she saw the glint of a telescopic sight on the ridge above her and she knew Boon would be waiting for her near the shack where he had taken up post.

When she joined him she noticed a surlier than usual look on his face. He hefted his pack on his shoulder with a grunt and began to walk away without waiting for her. This was more than odd since he usually trailed a few yards behind her. She jogged to catch up and when they were striding side by side she looked at him and said. "What crawled into your canteen?" This elicited a grunt and a quickening of pace. Kate gave up and took the rear cover position until they reached the outskirts of Boulder. Boone picked the backside of a ridge just outside of town for camp and started to lay out his bedroll. Kate threw down her pack and did the same. Then she sat down on the ground, gnawing on a broc flower stalk and stared directly at her reflection in Boone's sunglasses until he finally opened his mouth.

"I get why we need the Boomers for the upcoming battle but what I don't get is why we wasted a full day tramping back and forth for a couple of dumb kids who won't make it a week before driving each other insane." He threw a hunk of burnt Brahmin steak into their campfire, making sparks fly into the air, both literally and figuratively.

Kate's mouth dropped open and the crushed stalk fell out onto the dusty ground. "Seriously?" she gaped at him "Boone, they're in love. Doesn't that mean something to you? Didn't it ever mean something to you?" She went to her knees before him and laid a hand on his, her eyes begging him to reach for her.

He didn't answer, but kept staring straight into the setting sun, trying to hold back his emotions. His silence was all Kate needed to convince herself that his arms would never hold comfort for her and she was a fool to keep dreaming that they would one day. She stood and turned her back on him, and as she walked away she called out the words that would make them strangers again. "If your heart is as cold as you claim you can go. I do not care to have a companion who loves nothing and no one."


	5. Chapter 5

Her words finally opened a chink in his armor and cut into his already wounded soul, hurting him more than any Legion blade. Instead of letting go and seeking her healing hands he called upon his soldier's will and staunched the wound with pride. With the heat of anger blooming in his blood Boone slung his rifle and picked up his pack. He gave one last glare at Kate's back silhouetted against the New Vegas skyline before he turned heel and strode away into the darkening eastern hills.

As he walked his temper cooled and by the time he reached the top of the ridge and looked back he was sorry. He saw her standing exactly where he left her, her long red hair blowing in the dry Nevada wind. As he watched her he felt a different emotion stir deep in a part of himself that he thought was dead. Boone removed his sunglasses and rubbed his eyes. Could he care about someone again? Could he care about anything again? He didn't know. He knew caring hurt and he didn't want to hurt anymore. He also knew that before he met Kate life was empty and meaningless. She made him feel something again. He wasn't sure what that something was yet, but he knew he didn't want it to be pain, and the only way to avoid pain was to be empty again. So he decided to walk away. He allowed himself one last look. She looked different with his sunglasses off…softer somehow, and he wished he had looked closer when they had been together. What would if feel like to touch her arm and breathe in her scent…taste her lips? Maybe he did love… No, better not to know, better not to think, and easier to forget. He slipped his glasses back on and turned east again. Maybe he would go to Boulder City and fall in with the NCR again.

As he walked down the far slope and fell into the shadow of the hill he heard a faint popping. The rapport of an assault rifle, a common enough wasteland sound but it put a cold fear in the pit of Boone's gut as he ran back up to the ridge. The view had changed and he saw his worst nightmare unfold before him. Legion assassins surrounding a lone figure, fire blazing from the muzzle of a service rifle, strands of hair whipping in the desert wind. The same wind bore to his ears the screams of the only person in the world who gave a damn about his sorry ass. She was bound and taken away over the southern ridge before he could react. It was too dark to take a shot at the retreating party without risking hitting Kate anyway. The pain was back, willing or no. He was already emotionally involved and there was no going back. He had been a fool to turn his back on her, abandon her, and now it might be too late. At least he would make Caesar pay, he thought as he set out to track the assassins to wherever they were taking Kate.

As dawn approached Boone found himself on the edge of Cottonwood Cove, the camp on the Colorado River that served as port for Caesar's slave boats. He watched as several dozen legionaries marched about. This would be their last march, he thought as he took aim at the closest red uniform. Ten minutes later a lone figure wearing a red beret was punting up the river on an empty slave raft…


	6. Chapter 6

It was the bloodiest scene the Mojave had ever seen. Caesar and his bodyguard were in pieces too small to recognize and the smell of blood was overpowering. Boone knelt amid the carnage and whispered his first prayer to whatever God had seen fit to give him this small victory. He slid his sunglasses off his gore splattered face and wiped them on his BDU pants. Then he looked at them for a long moment and tossed them aside. He had to find her body and give her the decency of a burial that had been denied to the only other woman he had loved.

As he stood he heard a soft moan from Caesar's private room at the back of the tent. He stepped cautiously through the doorway and his heart stopped. Kate lay on a heap of big horner skins in the middle of the room, shackled and staked to the ground. Her face and arms were bare and horribly bruised. Boone went and knelt by her side. He was afraid to touch her. She seemed so fragile that one finger might break her into a million pieces. He went back into the main room and found a set of keys hanging from what he thought had once been Vulpes' waist. He found the right key and eased her wrists and ankles free as gently as he could manage. He scrounged some unbroken spears and made a makeshift litter with one of the big horner skins. He placed her on the litter and covered her with another skin. She did not wake but continued to moan softly in her sleep. He dragged the litter to the raft and floated them down to the landing just outside Nelson. Lieutenant Anders saw them coming and ordered a squad down to the river to help bring Kate up to the camp.

"Where's the doc?" Boone yelled at Anders as he charged past without waiting for an answer.

Several hours later Boone woke in a panic to the booming sound of artillery fire outside the hospital tent. He jumped to his feet and felt around desperately in the dark for his rifle.

"Stand easy soldier." Said a vaguely familiar voice. "It's all over now."

"What the hell are you talking about? We're under attack!" He pushed aside the shadowy form and threw back the tent flap, and was struck dumb by the bright flash of lightning and the soaking spray of a torrential downpour. Rain came down from the sky like the flood gates of Hoover Dam. He recovered his senses enough to step back into the tent and looked around to see who had spoken. President Kimball stood in front of him, pressing a towel into Boone's astonished hands.

"Dry yourself off son, and then we'll talk. Damn good thing someone had the brains to build the hospital tent on a concrete slab or this would be very wet meeting."

Boone wiped his face and arms and suddenly remembered Kate.

"Where is she...?"

"Sleeping again. But I hear that every moment she's awake she begs for you."

"How long have I been asleep?"

"Eighteen hours, give or take. And from what I've been told you earned every minute. Single handedly slaughtering Caesar's Legion and I don't for a minute suppose that you did it for me and the NCR." Kimball chuckled.

Two hours later Boone had been filled in on the battle of Hoover Dam, if you could call it that. One of Caesar's generals had gathered all his surviving troops for a suicide run on the dam. They had been annihilated by the boomers before they even set foot on this side of the Colorado. Kimball had thanked him up one side and down the other, going on and on about medals and ceremonies, but Boone had only one thought running through his mind.

He stepped around the privacy screens and his heart turned over in his chest. No doubt about the emotions this time. If ever he loved, this was it. Her face was still a mass of bruises, yellowing now, but still terrible to behold on her beautiful face. He touched her hand and her eyes fluttered open.

"I heard you coming but I wanted to give you a chance to get over the shock of how I look before…"

She didn't finish before hot tears streamed from his eyes onto her blanket. She thought he would crush her hand with the grip her had on it, but her heart shuddered in the bliss of his touch.

"Kate, I'm so sorry I let you down."

"You didn't let me down Boone, you saved me. From what I hear you damned near saved the whole NCR."

"Well it looks like you put up one hell of a fight anyway princess."

A wicked smile crept onto her lips. "I nearly took Vulpes' dick off when he tried to… well you can imagine. After that he beat me senseless, no doubt planning to finish me later. I had the worst dreams while I was out. Once, I thought I heard you yelling at me saying I told you so." She slipped suddenly back into the nightmare scenes of her capture and began to sob. Boone eased onto the creaky mattress next to her and pulled her against his chest. Fatigue overtook them both and they slept.


	7. Chapter 7

Several days later Kate was moved by Brahmin cart to more comfortable lodgings at Camp Golf. Boone stayed by her side day and night. After two more weeks of rest Kate was going crazy being cooped up in the hospital barracks and Boone was going crazy with all of the attention from NCR officials over his alleged heroics. One night he returned from a run to the chow hall to find Kate shakily limping around her room in nothing but a long shirt and her boots. He just looked at her somewhat disapprovingly but also with a glint of understanding and simply said, "We could ease our way north and stop at Nellis if it gets to be too much."

She cast him a look of utter relief and began to look around for the rest of her clothes. About the time she realized she had none, Boone was out the door again. Several minutes later he returned with three pairs of BDU pants and three white t-shirts in roughly her size. She rolled her eyes for a moment picturing the twin effect standing next to Boone, especially with the red beret he had given her, but then hurried to put one set on. She stuffed the other two sets into a day pack he must have liberated from supply with the clothing.

They were away well before dawn, and though they were moving very slowly it was a relief for Boone to be away from Camp Golf. He couldn't figure out why, but since he had left Novac he couldn't stand to stay in the same place for long. Maybe it was because he still had the nagging feeling that something bad was coming. They walked on in silence for most of the morning, heading roughly northeast and skirting the red outline of Bitter Springs. When they stopped for a rest Kate leaned against Boone's shoulder and asked in a weak voice that was almost a whisper, "Well the war is over. What do we do now?"

His eyebrows raised a fraction at the word 'we.' Even though he had succumbed to the emotional breakthrough when he thought he had lost her to the Legion, they had been very careful to never actually discuss it or any of the implied change in their relationship. Kate was playing a game of wait and see to keep from accidentally pushing him back into his shell.

Boone was playing a game that he felt was more akin to landmine bingo. He took a breath and lied his ass off.

"Actually I was thinking about joining back up."

Kate tried to keep the look of shocked disappointment out of her face but failed miserably.

"What? With the NCR? But..."

"I didn't think you would want me trailing after you anymore since your work here is done. I figured you would be going home."

"I'm not sure where home is anymore Craig. I came out here when my parents died. It was as good a place as any to avoid falling into a pit of misery, but now that I've begun to look forward instead of back I don't think I want to die with the sand of the Mojave in every crevice of my body. "

"Where would you go if you could decide where home was?"

"I've always liked the look of those mountains to the North. I've always imagined that somewhere on the other side is a little green valley with a cabin on a blue lake and lots of peace and quiet." She closed her eyes and smiled, picturing other things that she wouldn't say aloud.

Boone said nothing either, but in his mind he saw it too. A small clearing with a rough log cabin next to water, glowing softly in the twilight. He could even image the ghostly sound of a long extinct owl hooting. Without realizing it, his mouth curved into a genuine grin, and smile lines forms at the sides of his eyes. He came back to himself, decided to put the re-enlistment conversation on the back burner for now, and said,

"Anyway, I wasn't running back to General Oliver and company just yet. I might follow you around for a while if you still want me to."

Kate hooked her arm under his and melted into his side, willing him to not pull away for as long as she dared. Then it was she who stood and picked up her pack to start them on their way again.

They walked on and soon passed into territory they had not previously traveled, and they went slowly and cautiously. Even though Caesar's army was defeated, there were still dangers in the wasteland to consider. At dusk danger found them. They stumbled upon a massive nest of Cazadors, their tell-tale daytime buzzing reduced by onset of night, and were almost immediately surrounded.

Boone's .308 cracked again and again, downing the largest of the deadly monsters first, but the poison of the smaller ones were just as potent. He felt weaker every minute as he tried to swat away the jabs of their stingers. Kate had backed herself against a large rocky outcropping to offer some defense to her flank. The numbers of the beasts began to thin but she also started to feel a little woozy, then she noticed that she no longer heard any shots but her own. She looked around and saw him, too far away, kneeling and struggling to reload his rifle.

Kate put a final bullet between the eyes of the last Cazador and slumped forward to her knees. She had been stung about a half dozen times, more than enough to put her out and then down for good without treatment. She reached in her pack and found one last anti-venom. Her vision was blurring as she crawled over to Boone, pried open his jaws and poured the anti-venom down his throat. Kate kissed his brow, their first and last, and with a shaking hand drew a few letters in the hot Mojave sand before falling unconscious.

Boone woke slowly at first, his double vision sliding back together with a dreadful pounding of his brain. He snapped back to reality more quickly when he saw her body in the sand next to him, chest rising ever so slightly with labored breaths. He knew what had happened and didn't think before grabbing her pack and dumping the contents onto the ground sifting desperately for another dose of anti-venom. One stimpak, no anti-venom. He shot her with the stim, hoping it would slow the poison and sifted again, adding the contents of his own pack to the pile. Nothing. All this way for it to be over like this. He saw the letters she had scratched into the sand and hot tears filled his eyes. "I love y…"


	8. Chapter 8

No, he would not accept this! Damn it what was the point of love if it always ended like this? Boone screamed the terrible shriek of a soul in pain and pounded his fists into the sand. As he did so, he struck something hard that crackled in response. Pulling it from the sand he found the NCR walkie talkie that had been given to Kate months ago by the Rangers. They had said to call if she ever needed their help. He jammed his fingers down on the buttons and yelled a distress call into the microphone, repeating their coordinates over and over. The closest Ranger station was Bravo to the southeast of their position. He hoped to God that someone was listening…

Comm Officer Tilden was just slipping back in to the tent after fetching another cup of coffee when he heard the shrieking over the radio. He yelled for Ranger Ericsen as he ran towards the Officer's tent spilling his coffee into the dry ground.

Boone was cradling her head in his lap, brushing the sand from her face while tears streamed down his own. Minute rasps of breath came from her lips but she was turning blue and her pulse slowed as he watched helplessly. "I love you, I love you, I love you…" he muttered over and over, willing her to stay with him.

Boone saw them coming and yelled out "Cazador!" Ranger Ericsen didn't hesitate as she approached the place where Boone and Kate lay. She tore open the med pack and slid to a stop in the sand beside them. In the same motion she unstopped a vial of anti-venom and poured. She immediately administered another stimpak and began an IV to give more drugs if needed. Boone held his breath to see of Kate still breathed. It was shallow and intermittent but it was still there. He could only pray that the anti-venom would work with her this far gone. Two other rangers arrived and began assembling a litter to transport Kate back to Station Bravo. Ericsen put a hand on Kate's carotid to feel her pulse. The look she gave Boone made his guts turn.

"I can try one more thing…It's not a standard chem, in fact it's Legion issue."

Boone felt an involuntary rage flare at the word "Legion…I don't care. If it can save her, do it!"

Ericsen opened a bottle of Bitter Drink and injected it directly into Kate's IV. A few moments later her breathing eased and grew more regular. Her color improved and her pulse was stronger. The Rangers loaded her onto the litter and carried her back to the station. From there she was taken all the way back to Camp Golf.

Boone was not there when she woke up. Mags told her that he had left as soon as he knew for sure that she would recover. He had gone towards New Vegas and did not say a word to anyone about when or even if he would return. Kate stayed in bed for several days. Already weakened by her encounter with the legion the poison had done more damage than expected. Her legs felt heavy as lead and would not support her weight. Her vision was blurry and she felt dizzy if she sat up longer than a few minutes. Days went by with little improvement. Doc Mitchell came all the way from Goodsprings to see if he could do anything for her, but it seemed that she may be crippled for good. President Kimball made an appearance, but his dry jokes and inevitable questions about Boone made her beg to be left alone. Her spirit seemed more broken than when she had been Vulpes' rag doll.

One evening Mags came in to her room and helped her into a hip bath. She made a special show of washing, brushing and arranging her long red hair with some soft yellow ribbons. Instead of dressing her in her usual plain white nightshirt she brought out a pale yellow sleeveless dress, edged with fading lace.

"This was my mothers." Mags said, "I don't know why I held onto it so long. I guess I'm just silly."

"Mags, it's lovely," said Kate, barely holding in tears, "but I'd prefer my old shirt. No sense in putting on a dress when I'm just going to crease the devil out of it wallowing on this damn cot."

"Well you're not getting back on your cot tonight. Doctor's orders are to take you to the mess hall to socialize for your mental health." She made an exaggerated, mock stern face.

"I'll be damned if…"

"Now I hate to bring this up but you really have no choice do you? I mean, I can get Poindexter in here if I need an extra set of muscles, but your so damn thin anyway I could carry you there myself. Besides, you wouldn't want the troops to miss their one opportunity to see you all dolled up. They sure as hell don't care to look at me in my trooper armor any more than they have too."

Kate huffed but did not protest anymore.


	9. Chapter 9

She sat in the mess hall in a padded arm chair, eating nothing, with a blank look on her face. One by one the troops ate and left until she was the only one in the room. She was seated at a small table by the windows, with her chair angled so that she could look out at Lake Mead and the lights on the dam beyond. She stared out, looking but seeing nothing until she was startled by the lights being turned out in the mess hall. She looked around and saw a figure approaching from the kitchen door with a candelabra. Guess the generator is on the fritz, she thought. The figure came closer and she saw now that it was a tall man dressed in a tuxedo. For a minute she thought some of the talent from the Aces Club had gotten lost. She could not really make out the man's face in the gloom but when he stepped up beside her and spoke her heart nearly stopped.

"May I?" he said gently, motioning to the chair across from her.

Kate could not speak, but nodded, blinking tears from her eyes. Boone, now looking utterly different without both his trademark sunglasses and beret, put the candelabra on the table, sat in the chair next to hers and took her hands in his. Through the blur of her tears she could see his own eyes filling with emotion. He sat for a moment stroking her fingers and warming her slim hands with his large ones.

"I'm sorry I left you, but I had some things to do and they took longer than I had planned." Boone said.

He then took a deep breath and reached into the pocket of his coat. The candlelight glinted off of the silver filigree band set with small diamonds.

"Turns out that Michael Angelo clown has some real talent after all. I heard about his lesser known side gig of making jewelry from his sister at the Vault 21 Hotel. Much nicer work that his signs. What do you think?" he waited, holding his breath.

"I think you're a real ass sometimes." Kate choked out between sobs.

He rose and stood over her. She looked up at him, her heart pounding in her chest as he slowly leaned down and lightly brushed his warm lips across the angle of her jaw.

"You've got that right babe." He said, "Most of the time I would say, but not today. I promise to be a perfect gentleman. Will you marry me Kate?"

Her 'yes' was nearly inaudible, but she managed to get it out. Every hair on her body stood on end as he ran his hands down her bare arms and claimed her mouth in a full, passionate kiss. He raised her left hand to slide the ring onto her finger, then he gathered her into his arms and carried her out of the dining room. She buried her face deep is his coat, inhaling the scent of him. She shuddered a little with nerves when he didn't take her to her own room, but to one of the larger suites normally reserved for visiting dignitaries. There were candles glowing softly on the bedside tables and the bed was a wide one.

"Confident bastard aren't you, to have all of this arranged ahead of time?" she said with a little smile, feeling giddy until she remembered that half of her body was virtually paralyzed. He saw the change in her expression as he propped her against the pillows and misunderstood her anxiety.

"Don't worry, I didn't intend to jump your bones. I just want to be with you and hold you in my arms. I promised to be a gentleman, remember?"

"It's not that at all Craig. I was thinking I wouldn't be a very good wife to you because of my legs."

He sat down on the bed facing her with his arm arching over her waist. He leaned towards her, rested his forehead on hers and whispered,

"First off, I would carry you a thousand miles across Deathclaw infested desert to get you an ice cold Sunset Sarsaparilla. Second, I don't believe for one minute that you are crippled for life. You just need the right motivation. Third, I spoke to Dr. Usanagi at the clinic and she thinks she can help get you back on your feet as soon as you are willing to give it a try. I have to say that I hope it's sooner rather than later because I have plans for you and those legs. I'm not a very good sniper without my partner, and I have a mission in mind that I think you will want to be in on."

He stood again and shrugged out of his coat, placing it on a side chair, kicked off his boots and then blew out the candles.

"You clean up good." Kate said as he sat against the headboard and pulled her into his arms.

"So do you kid. Now kiss me again."

He held her all night, and they talked till dawn, saying so many things that they had kept secret from each other. He told her about sharing her dream of the cabin by the lake and how he had heard of an area to the north in Utah called Pine Valley, where he hoped to find just such a place to build one.

They fell asleep as the sun began its climb into the sky, to once more bake the dry sands for the Mojave Wasteland. But in their dreams they felt only cool lake water lapping against their skin as they swam near their small log house in the green valley.


End file.
